"Then the Lord said to him, 'Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.'” (Exodus 4:11-12)
Moses is arguing with God. That truth alone is rather remarkable. The God of the universe lets His creation reason and argue with Him, instead of instantly vaporizing the insubordination. This says a lot about the God we serve. He is kind, patient, present, and loving. He is also the God of all things.
Moses heard God’s call for his life and immediately filtered it through the lens of his personal limitations because he is "slow of speech and of tongue." He couldn’t see how God’s plan could work because he couldn’t see beyond his own frailties. Instead of seeing God powerful enough to overcome Moses’ weakness, Moses saw his weakness as too great for God to work with—his vision consumed by his imperfections.
But God’s response is loving and direct: "Who has made man’s mouth?" God gently reminds Moses that it was He who knit him together in his mother’s womb. God calls Moses to widen his gaze to see the greater truths in front of him. God made Moses, exactly as he is. God designed Moses for such a time as this. To top it all off, God promises to go with Moses and teach him what to do.
God’s presence is an incredible gift. However, the second part of God's promise to Moses often feels less like the gift we want. He doesn’t promise to immediately perfect Moses and provide him everything at once. Rather, God promises to be with him and—through time and experience, piece by piece, lesson by lesson, through each seeming success and failure—teach Moses how to speak. This method is long and slow yet forces a daily faith that is likely the reason why God so often uses it with His children.
Knowledge of our dependence on God is an essential gift. Life is most perilous when pride convinces us we only need God a little bit (or, in Moses’ case, when pride convinces us God can’t use us). Considering this truth, may we help our clients embrace the long and slow process God has for them in their journey of sanctification. It will almost always feel like it's going too slow. But each day that we taste our frailty and embrace our desperate need for help is a day in which faith more easily conquers pride. It is a day that self-reliance gives way to trust in our Heavenly Father.
